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The perils of taking indoor rock climbing outside

By Phillip Dwight MorganSpecial to the Star

Fri., Nov. 24, 2017timer5 min. read

On any given weeknight, climbing gyms across Toronto are teeming with students, young professionals, children and parents with strollers who alternate between climbing and caregiving. They fill the space, holding the ropes for one another and encouraging each other to climb just a little bit higher.

Climbing in Toronto is increasingly in demand and the sport’s growing popularity shows few signs of slowing. In the GTA alone, eight new climbing gyms have opened in the last three years, three during the last year. These gyms include Basecamp Climbing in downtown Toronto, Boulderz Climbing Centre in southern Etobicoke, the Hub in Markham, the Cave, the Hub, and Up the Bloc in Mississauga, Toprock Climbing in Brampton and Aspire Climbing in Milton. And there are more on the horizon.

Every summer, hundreds of climbers travel to climbing destinations across the province, contributing to the local economies of places such as Burlington, Tobermory and Collingwood. But as the ever-increasing numbers make their way outdoors, the pressure they place on the land is raising concerns among both landowners and climbers.

For landowners, fear of climbers disrupting and damaging local flora and fauna are often front of mind despite studies showing that climbers are typically responsible stewards of the land and often less disruptive than other user groups. Privately owned climbing areas, such as Mount Nemo and Lion’s Head, have strict guidelines about use. Violations can lead to land closures and revocation of access.

For climbers, the increased number of people scaling rocks means greater pressure on cliffs (or “crags”), the finite resource that forms the basis of the sport. This amounts to greater wear and damage on cliffs, as well as lineups for some of the more popular climbs.

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When I first entered an indoor climbing gym nearly 10 years ago, experienced climbers were already grumbling that the sport had become “too popular” and that new climbers “didn’t respect the history of the sport.”

They complained new climbers were walking off-trail in nature sanctuaries and leaving litter at the bases of cliffs.

Mentorship, they believed, was the key to preserving the integrity of the sport. I benefited from this as experienced members took me under their wings and helped me transition from indoor to outdoor climbing as I moved from gym member to staff and eventually a climbing gym manager.

But with the explosion in the sport’s popularity, mentorship is no longer feasible.

“There aren’t enough willing and able mentors out there to take all the numbers of these youth and new climbers to the cliff,” says Tony Berlier, the co-chair of the Ontario Access Coalition (OAC), a not-for-profit group that works to ensure climbing areas stay open in an environmentally responsible manner.

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In 2017, the OAC’s membership increased by 20 per cent, or 248 members, bringing its total to 1,390 members. Sales at Mountain Equipment Co-op’s downtown Toronto location illustrate this growing popularity. While the Toronto store is third in overall sales behind Calgary and Vancouver, it is the chain’s most profitable in climbing equipment sales.

Five to 10 years ago, mentorship reached a point where it’s not sustainable, Berlier said. “The ratio is 10 to one or something, arguably. It’s just absolutely impossible from a sheer numbers perspective.”

In place of mentorship, the OAC is developing a two-pronged approach to encourage responsible outdoor climbing practices.

First, the coalition is exploring promoting OAC- approved “gym to crag” programs that would provide valuable information about access, in addition to technical training provided by certified climbing guides. Second, the OAC is also considering encouraging all Ontario climbers to take a “climber’s pact,” an informal commitment to following best practices before heading outside.

A large poster at the entrance of one Toronto climbing gym illustrates the coalition’s concerns and offers solutions.

In three columns, it points out “what happens in the gym,” “the impacts of these behaviours on the crag” and “what should be done instead.”

The first point, for example, acknowledges: “Loud music fuels your climbing” while, at the crag, it continues, “Loud music may disrupt others trying to enjoy the outdoors, including landowners.” The final column, “Do this instead,” encourages climbers to leave their speakers at home or turn them down when people are nearby.”

The table lists several other differences between the gym and the crag, with impacts ranging from destruction of plant life to the safety of climbers. “You stash your pack and unused gear in a locker” in the gym. At the crag, however, “sprawling gear can crush plant life, trample sensitive soil and disturb other climbing parties.” Similarly, “gym staff clean up chalk spills and provide trash cans for bar wrappers and discarded finger tape” while, at the crag, “chalk spills and trash are your responsibility.” In the gym, “climbing in large groups is no big deal.” At the crag, “climbing in large groups is not always appropriate, especially when the crag is crowded or in areas where access is sensitive.”

“Consistently, the No. 1 challenge to access in Ontario is the explosion of climbing and the transition outdoors,” Berlier says.

With the rapid growth of indoor climbing and initiatives such as Parkbus, which helps city dwellers access provincial parks and regional conservation areas, the sharp line that once separated indoor and outdoor climbing cultures is becoming increasingly blurred.

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While I learned about outdoor safety and etiquette from my mentors, land stewardship was communicated through a simple phrase: Leave no trace.

Berlier says this still applies today. “ ‘Leave no trace’ is so basic and obvious to anybody who’s spent any amount of time in the outdoors or had any mentorship exposure,” he says. “But it’s not common, I think at some level, for someone who’s come from a major metropolitan area to the outdoors for the first time. They don’t understand that somebody doesn’t come by and pick up their litter,” he says. “This is a greater philosophical question about humanity and our existence.”

In a city where access to nature can feel quite limited, climbers must ensure that our push to get outside and escape this city doesn’t, in fact, end up leaving us stranded here.

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